Not just reporting a problem, but studying it, comparing possible solutions, and submitting a concrete proposal for evaluation by others.
This is the principle that guided Danilo Amelotti, a retired raider of the 9th Paratrooper Assault Regiment “Col Moschin” and now a consultant and trainer in the security sector, in creating a study dedicated to the protection of workers sent abroad.
The project also involved engineer Manzan, a retired paratrooper officer of the 185th Paratrooper Artillery Regiment “Folgore”, providing his technical contribution in document collection and institutional promotion of the proposal.
The work, published on the scientific platform Zenodo, contains a proposal to amend Legislative Decree 81 of 2008, the Italian Consolidated Act on health and safety at work.
The goal is to strengthen the management of risks associated with international work activities, especially when personnel are sent to countries characterized by political instability, terrorism, crime, armed conflicts, civil unrest, kidnappings, or severe health and humanitarian emergencies.
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A Problem Born from Field Experience
Amelotti's reflection starts from the experience gained first in the military world and later in training diplomats, journalists, officials, humanitarian workers, technicians, and corporate staff destined to operate in hostile environments.
In the military world, after every activity, operation, or training, events are analyzed to identify what worked, the mistakes made, and the procedures to improve. It is the logic of the After Action Review: not simply seeking a culprit, but understanding the process that produced a certain result.
A method that Amelotti has transferred to his civilian activity.
Over the years, interacting with the private sector, the consultant identified a significant difference between the preparation reserved for diplomatic, institutional, or humanitarian personnel and that provided for many workers sent abroad by companies.
Many companies have detailed administrative procedures for authorizing trips, organizing travel, and managing insurance. However, the person sent to the location does not always receive preparation truly proportionate to the risks present at the destination.
Not Turning Workers into Soldiers
Preparing an employee to operate in a complex area does not mean turning them into a soldier or a security specialist.
A technician must continue to be a technician, a manager a manager, and a journalist a journalist. Training must allow each to perform their work while understanding the environment they are in, promptly recognizing dangers, and knowing how to act in an emergency.
This is the principle behind HEAT courses, Hostile Environment Awareness Training, initially developed for government, diplomatic, journalistic, and humanitarian personnel destined for crisis areas.
These programs may include threat analysis, situational awareness, stress management, emergency communications, first aid, behavior during unrest or attacks, and procedures to adopt in case of evacuation, detention, assault, or kidnapping.
It is therefore not combat training, but preventive preparation.
The Limit of Good Practices Alone
According to Amelotti's reflection, the main problem would not necessarily be the lack of professionalism or attention from companies.
Many companies are aware of their duty of protection and voluntarily adopt Travel Risk Management procedures. What is missing, however, would be a sufficiently organic and recognizable framework, capable of transforming personnel preparation from a simple good practice to a concrete, verifiable responsibility proportionate to foreseeable risks.
D.Lgs. 81/2008 already establishes the general principle of assessing all work-related risks. International activities, however, pose specific and continuously evolving problems: geopolitical crises, terrorism, crime, health emergencies, institutional instability, transport disruptions, and evacuation difficulties.
The proposal therefore aims to open a discussion on the opportunity to make the management of these situations more explicit and structured, further integrating Travel Risk Management into the Italian work safety system.
From ISO 31030 to Corporate Responsibility
Among the references considered are also international standards on Travel Risk Management, particularly the ISO 31030 standard, which provides guidelines for managing risks related to business travel.
The underlying principle is that of “Duty of Care,” the organization's duty to take reasonable measures to protect the people operating on its behalf.
An effective system cannot be limited to choosing a hotel or taking out an insurance policy. It must include the preventive analysis of the destination, threat assessment, worker information, training, communications, assistance during the mission, and emergency planning.
Preparation must also be proportionate. A trip to a European capital does not present the same risks as a technical mission in an area affected by terrorism, war, or political instability.
An Open Proposal for Discussion
Amelotti does not present his study as a definitive solution, but as a basis for discussion.
The work arises from the consultation of regulations, judgments, technical standards, and national and international documents, as well as from discussions with jurists, trainers, consultants, and security professionals.
In this process, the technical collaboration of engineer Manzan, a retired officer of the 185th Paratrooper Artillery Regiment “Folgore,” who contributed to the collection and organization of documentation, as well as the institutional promotion of the proposal to potentially interested interlocutors, is also included.
The central idea is that a proposal can only improve when subjected to verification and criticism by other experts.
An approach that once again recalls the military method of debriefing: the value of analysis does not lie in proving who was right, but in ensuring that the next activity is conducted better.
“Ideas change the world only when they accept being challenged,” writes Amelotti presenting the project.
The publication on Zenodo allows professionals, scholars, companies, and institutional representatives to freely consult the document, evaluate its conclusions, and contribute to the debate.
International Security and Prevention Culture
The growing internationalization of companies makes the topic increasingly relevant.
Every day Italian workers are sent abroad to oversee construction sites, install plants, perform maintenance, conclude commercial agreements, or coordinate projects. Some operate in relatively safe countries, others in contexts where a sudden political or military change can quickly turn a normal trip into an emergency situation.
Preparing personnel before departure means reducing improvisation, improving decision-making ability, and increasing the chances that everyone can return home safely.
Amelotti's proposal, also developed thanks to the technical collaboration of engineer Manzan, thus brings into the regulatory debate a culture matured in operational experience: observing the problem, analyzing it without prejudice, building a possible solution, and allowing others to verify and improve it.
Not an endpoint, but the beginning of a discussion on the protection of those working beyond national borders.
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